100 Club Dinner: The ultimate pep rally

MANCHESTER, N.H. – Democrats from around New Hampshire gathered Friday evening for a party celebrating the 100-year anniversary of the New Hampshire Primary.

After speeches from  current and former state party chairs highlighting political accomplishments over the past eight years, Rep. Ann McLane Kuster, Gov. Maggie Hassan and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen pumped up the crowd before Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took to the stage.

Although no votes were likely won or lost, the dinner served as anopportunity for both presidential candidates to speak one final time to the state party faithful as a whole before Tuesday’s primary election.

Sanders rolled out his typical stump speech, advocating everything from  a crack down on Wall Street to tuition free college. Clinton spoke second, urging her supporters to keep fighting for her.

“New Hampshire’s never quit on me and I’m not going to quit on you,” Clinton said.

Many supporters for both candidates had traveled from the far reaches of the state and beyond to hear their candidates speak. One Sanders supporter traveled across the state border from Massachusetts because he believed in Sanders’ plan for veterans.

“They both have similar plans for taking care of vets like me, but I feel like Bernie truly cares more,” said the passionate Sanders supporter before the event.

Ben Schorr, a young professional from Washington, D.C., who came to Manchester for the weekend spoke of his desire to see President Obama’s legacy continued, but in a practical manner.

“I am compelled to be here by the need to maintain the progress of Obama and get so much more done,’ Schorr said. “The biggest difference between the two candidates is progressive realism. Hillary has always held the ideals of progressives and worked on them, accomplishing so much over time.”

Both candidates have noted in recent weeks that they agree on most goals, and that only their plans to achieve them are the differentiating factor in this election.

After a narrow victory in the Iowa Caucus, Clinton finds herself trailing Sanders by 9 points in the latest Suffolk University/Boston Globe poll. With New Hampshire voters notorious for making their choice very late in the primary process, it will be interesting to see in these closing days if Sanders can build a larger cushion in the Granite State to highlight his political viability heading into Nevada, South Carolina and Super Tuesday, or if Clinton can close the gap.